I don't speak Japanese, but it's definitely not a touchscreen. I went through the spec page and machine translated all the "footnotes". Footnote #10 on the "Double pointing device" seems pretty clear (even in its machine translated form):

The lack of a touch screen is actually a pro in my book. No need for screen protectors, no XP Tablet edition nonsense, and one less custom hardware device standing in the way of a Linux port.

For me the only negative of this slick little micro notebook is what Engadget refers to as the "scrolleriffic 800 x 480" LCD. But that's still 25% more screen real estate than my C760, and in a much less eyestrain inducing size. I hate to say it, but I think my Z's days may be numbered.

I've been using a Sony TX2 for a little while now and runs linux very well (sony had a fit of madness and put an SD card slot in it too), so much so that I'm probably going to make an offer and keep it. It's got SO much integrated in it that you don't need a great big bag to carry things, just a modem cable and ethernet! The *only* thing which could make it better would be TV-out and tablet mode with touch screen. Thus, I don't think I'll be trading to this one, as I've got a C3100 on its way to me, but maybe its successor will have touchscreen.

I still think a C3500W = C3200 with 512M RAM and Wireless would be a simple but HUGE win.

The TX2 looks like a sweet laptop, but at $2K+ we're talking about a whole different class of device. There are probably lots of Z alternatives if "money is no object". The more interesting question is: if you cap the price at around that of an SL-3200 ($600 - $700 including accessories), what are the alternatives?

I use my Z mainly as an ultra-portable thin client. Hardware wise I need WiFi, Bluetooth, and a keyboard. Software wise I need a full web browser, email, VNC, SSH, IM, a good text editor (Vim), a basic spreadsheet, and a bash shell. The Kohjinsha is the first gadget I've seen since Sharp introduced the clamshell series that seems to meet all those requirements at anything even close to the Z's price.

How about it? Are there other gadgets I should be considering that meet the above criteria and are a) still in production, B) under $900? Or are Sharp and Kohjinsha the only other games in town?

The TX2 looks like a sweet laptop, but at $2K+ we're talking about a whole different class of device. There are probably lots of Z alternatives if "money is no object". The more interesting question is: if you cap the price at around that of an SL-3200 ($600 - $700 including accessories), what are the alternatives?

before people assume I'm rich, I got my TX2 discounted as remaindered shop-soiled stock now that the TX3 is out... paid much much less than that. It's about as small as you can get before it fails to be a laptop and fails to be an oversized PDA. I'm wondering whether this Kohjinsha would fail to be either PDA or laptop, especially with lack of touchscreen. I carry a gadget bag, a small camcorder bag, with me most of the time, contains my digicam, Palm, Zaurus, accessories etc; if the Kohjinsha was too big, I could see myself leaving it at home too often.

There's also the issue of using it at work. People are allowed to use PDAs, but not personal laptops, so the Z escapes attention (other than as a "wow" gadget), but the K would almost certainly not.

Probably, it'd come down to individual tastes. Perhaps the reality is that until we get roll-up screens so that you can have something as small as a Z which unfolds/unrolls to an 8" display, there's not going to be a perfect device.

The TX2 looks like a sweet laptop, but at $2K+ we're talking about a whole different class of device. There are probably lots of Z alternatives if "money is no object". The more interesting question is: if you cap the price at around that of an SL-3200 ($600 - $700 including accessories), what are the alternatives?I use my Z mainly as an ultra-portable thin client. Hardware wise I need WiFi, Bluetooth, and a keyboard. Software wise I need a full web browser, email, VNC, SSH, IM, a good text editor (Vim), a basic spreadsheet, and a bash shell. The Kohjinsha is the first gadget I've seen since Sharp introduced the clamshell series that seems to meet all those requirements at anything even close to the Z's price.How about it? Are there other gadgets I should be considering that meet the above criteria and are a) still in production, under $900? Or are Sharp and Kohjinsha the only other games in town?

I believe a Nokia 770 tablet with a BT keyboard would meet your requirements quite well, for less than half your upper limit, with the screen resolution of the Kohjinsha and the form factor of a Z.

Before you throw up your arms in indignation, let me just state that I was myself a diehard clamshell-with-keyboard fan for almost ten years, with several Psion Series5 models and a Z760. I allowed myself to be tempted by the 770's low price, but found over the past year that what I bought as a gadget has become the most extensively used of all the mobile devices I've tried.

I was surprised to find that the lack of integrated keyboard wasn't after all the nuisance I expected it to be, and that I actually use the separate BT keyboard less often than I thought I would. The screen, onboard Wifi and BT are what really count.

Of course, if we could have a standalone, BT version of the Psion5's keyboard, things might be different :-)

Talking about the 770, what happened to the 2nd iteration of the 770 that was rumoured/suposed to be coming soon ?

Maybe I could also live with a 770 with a keyboard as a replacement. The Kohjinsha, while it looks great is just a tad above the price limit I would afford for a smallish device. And until linux is proven to run on it will hold off.

That is another point I have noticed - that all Zaurus replacements are more of a Desktop Linux machine in a small size unlike the Zaurus which was embedded Linux. Which makes me think that to prep myself up for such a full fledged linux machine , maybe I should switch to PDAXROM and get a taste of desktop like linux on a small package.

i belive i am currentlly in the market for a Z replacment as the compiling issues are a PITA. the new sony UMPC looks good but what do others thing about the OQO and other UMPC,s on the market. personally they are a bit big (at least a Z will fit in my pocket) but they nearly all have wifi, bluetooth, USB and VGA out